Given the recent discussions surrounding New Zealand's ports and shipping infrastructure, I thought it was time we created a separate thread.
So, am I to expect the closure of Port Nelson on the basis that is nowhere near Tauranga? Is Port Chalmers going to close? What about Lytelton? They're nowhere near Tauranga either. Should they close?This is definitely the future of shipping in new zealand. One or two major hub ports with all the rest either closing or being used to feed the hub, and the close you are to that hub the easier and more cost effective itll be to import or export your goods.
Aug 25 (BusinessDesk) – The Port of Bluff operator, South Port New Zealand Ltd., will spend $6.3 million in the next financial year on new cargo-handling facilities in the largest commitment of capital spending since the company was formed in 1988.
South Port reported a net profit after tax of $5.98 million in the year to
June 30, a 15% improvement on the previous year as every major cargo category, including logs, processed sawn timber, meat and dairy-related exports and imports, and a record year of shipping from the Rio Tinto aluminium smelter at nearby Tiwai Point.
“In the port industry, it is unusual for almost all cargo sectors to be either growing or maintaining their existing tonnage levels at the one time,” said chairman John Harrington in a statement to the NZX.
Total tonnage through the port had increased from 2.17 million tonnes in the previous financial year to 2.674 million tonnes, and the port had “at times been stretched with its existing resources to service an elevated base level of cargo.”
Consequently, despite forecasting profits 15% to 20% lower in the current financial year, Harrison said the port was committing $5.8 million to a new, larger mobile harbour crane, and $700,000 on an additional heavy lift container forklift.
At the same time, South Port is lifting its total dividend payout for the year to 20 cents a share, compared with 17 cents last year. A final, fully imputed dividend of 14.5 cents a share, payable Nov.2, with a record date of Sept. 23.
The result was built on record revenues of $25.1 million, up 11% on the previous year, while earnings per share lifted from 23.9 cents to 19.9 cents on a normalised basis, which ignores non-cash impacts of changes to rules
governing capital asset depreciation.
The reduced profit outlook owed to the strength of the New Zealand dollar, weakening dairy commodity prices, and debt-constrained European and American economies, along with a substantial increase in insurance premiums because of the Canterbury earthquakes.
At balance date, the port had only managed to replace some 80% of its expiring reinsurance cover, although the remainder had been purchased since then.
With just 26.2 million shares on issue and issued capital of $9.4 million, the thinly traded South Port shares were unchanged today at $3.20.
A $4.5 million dry storage warehouse project will begin at South Port in the next few months to keep up with increasing demand from the agriculture sector.
At the South Port annual meeting yesterday, chief executive Mark O'Connor announced the construction of the multimillion-dollar warehouse, with the first of the two stage development, at 3000 square metres, beginning in the new year.
The port had several contracts for dry storage, which included stockfeed such as palm kernel and molasses, but dry warehousing was limited so more space was needed, he said.
"All the existing dry warehousing at the moment is fully occupied at the port," he said.
It was the growth in the agriculture sector that had prompted the expansion, while there was also an expected increase in stockfeed demand, Mr O'Connor said. "We saw some fairly strong stock import volume in the province in the past year and there is potential for this dry storage warehouse to be required for stockfeed."
The first stage, which would cost about $2.5m, would be constructed by Calder Stewart and was expected to be completed by June, while the second stage was expected to double the size and would be reviewed in about 12 months to make sure it was still viable, he said.
The Bluff-based company's performance figures for the financial year ending June 30 were released last month and showed cargo movements on the island harbour hit a record of 2.64 million tonnes, up 470,000 tonnes on last year. This resulted in a normalised profit of $5.98m, up $770,000.
Primary industries remained the key to the port's growth, with log volumes exceeding 300,000 tonnes last financial year, a substantial lift from about 100,000 tonnes two years previously, Mr O'Connor said yesterday.
South Port outgoing chairman John Harrington, who stepped down from the board of directors following the meeting, said New Zealand Aluminium Smelters was still the most vital client of the port, especially because there was no guarantee shipping lines would continue.
The company's target profit for the 2012 year was between $5m to $5.3m, he said. This reflected the effect on trade from continuing global economic uncertainty and represented a 10 to 15 per cent reduction for the 2012 financial year.
God damn, why are they complaining again??The average annual wage of an Auckland wharfie is about $91,480 - reportedly for a 26-hour week, employees and their families get free medical insurance, and three weeks sick leave entitlement is written into contracts. They also get five weeks annual leave.